The Tale of Balinor
by unorthodox yo-yo
Summary: There was so much more to Balinor, so much more to the story of the great Dragonlords. Now he is the only one left and his act of mercy leaves him ujustly subject to the will of the King of Camelot.
1. Prologue

**I decided that there ought to be more fanfiction about Balinor. I just finished Season 2 of Merlin and I was so sad when Balinor died, even though I knew he would. He seemed like a character I would have liked a lot. **

**This prologue was fun to write, creating foreshadowing and back-story for the Merlin series. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin or any of the characters. If I did, I would write an episode with a character that David Tennant could play. I think he'd make a great villain for an episode. **

"I told you, Nimueh! The creation of a life is forbidden by the law of the Dragonlords!" Balinor stood in the middle of the Isle of the Blessed, staring daggers at the witch. She stared back defiantly.

"What is that now, the law of the Dragonlords? You are the last now. Do you really claim to still have this authority over those of the Old Religion?" She challenged, jaw jutted forward.

"This authority was passed down through generations of Dragon Lords since the beginning of time," Balinor growled. "The role of my kind is to make sure that order is maintained. You have disrupted this order, Nimueh. In granting King Uther Pendragon a son, the Old Religion has punished us by taking his wife."

"How was I supposed to know that Uther would lose his wife and go mad?" Nimueh demanded.

"It does not matter! Life is sacred and not to be meddled with. You have disrupted the balance of the world," Balinor started circling round the stone table the stood in the courtyard of the Isle of the Blessed, eyes locked on Nimueh. "And now the Great Purge of magic has begun. A priestess of the Old Religion should have known better, now we all are to pay the price. Hundreds of magical people have been slaughtered. Dozens of dragons have perished and of the Twelve Lords, I am the last. It will be many years before balance is once again achieved."

"And what of the unbalance that would have been caused if Uther had not produced an heir?" Nimueh challenged. "What would have become of Albion then?"

"Fate would have found a way," Balinor said. "Either to grant Uther a son or it would have found another way of bringing about balance. It was not a choice for you to make."

Nimueh snarled, apparently not convinced.

Suddenly Balinor reared back and let out a roar, eyes flashing gold. "And here is a prophecy of the last Great Dragon!" Balinor cried. "Fate will try to take back the prince it has given and your life will be taken instead. The magic of the Dragonlords will be your downfall because you have disobeyed them and brought about this upheaval against magic."

Nimueh took a step back, eyes wide with fear for a moment. Balinor had not cursed her, he had prophesied. The Last Dragon and the Last Dragonlord were linked and the future was their second sight.

But as quickly as fear had entered her eyes, it left again. She no longer believed in the authority of the Dragonlords.

"We shall see," she sneered. "I am not to blame for the death of our kind. Uther Pendragon is. And for that he shall pay."

_Uther Pendragon shall pay._

Balinor closed his eyes and stumbled back slightly at the force in Kilgharrah's voice. Yes indeed, the actions of Nimueh aside, the King was to blame for the death of his kind. And Kilgharrah was not normally forgiving.

Balinor paused for a moment, understanding the hurt that the dragon felt. The deaths of Dragon and Dragonlord alike was brought about by Uther Pendragon, perhaps he should let the great beast do what he desired and enact revenge upon the king.

But then he had a vision of what Kilgharrah was doing. The fair city of Camelot was burning. He could see women and children running and crying in the streets as the men tried to protect them in vain. Red cloaked soldiers ran about, wounded and burned. Inside the castle the wicked king looked out his window and feared for his people. A small blonde child, only just big enough to walk was crying into the shoulder of his nurse for fear.

There was a difference between justice and revenge, Balinor knew. He had to do something. The innocent shouldn't have to suffer because of an arrogant man turned mad by grief.

**Yay! Prologue! Future chapters will have meetings with Uther, Gaius helping Balinor, and *drum roll* Balinor meeting Hunith! R&R! **

**God bless! **


	2. Chapter 1 The King and the Dragon

**So I've noticed handful of people have already added this story to their favorites list, which is really exciting. Buuut! I'm an English Major! Reviews with encouragement or advise or whatever would be most appreciated! I want to improve this in whatever way I can. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own much. (poor college student) But I really don't own Merlin. **

Balinor had sent word to King Uther to meet him in a surrounding village in the middle of the day. Kilgharrah usually attacked at night, so the king shouldn't have had any trouble getting there.

Balinor stood at the edge of the village. Facing Camelot, knowing the King and his men would come from that direction.

The message he had sent said: _If you are willing to meet my terms, I can help you bring down the Great Dragon and protect the people of Camelot._

He included instructions on where and when he could be found and had signed it _The Last Dragonlord_, knowing the king would understand the gravity of the circumstances.

King Uther did not disappoint. He showed up precisely on time with a host of twelve nights. He stared down at the rugged warlock who stood before him.

"Are you the Dragonlord?" King Uther asked.

"I am."

"How do I bring down the Great Dragon?" he asked urgently.

"You don't," Balinor told him. "You don't have the power. Only a Dragonlord can take down the Great Dragon."

"Then will you kill him?" King Uther asked, worry in his voice.

"No."

King Uther's hand rested on his sword. "Then why did you call us here?" He challenged.

"I will not be responsible for the utter end of the noble bread of the Dragons," Balinor declared. "But I can order the beast to leave."

"Why not just order it to leave yourself, if you care so much?" the King challenged. "Or is this some plot to take Camelot for yourself?"

"Calling the Dragon will sound an awful lot like the usage of magic to your people, I imagine that you wouldn't want to cause any more distress if it could be helped," Balinor replied.

"How do I know that I can trust you won't order it to attack as soon as you've been paid," The King challenged again.

"You brought this on yourself, Sire. The Great Purge has won you more enemies than friends. Now after all of your betrayal you can trust no one yourself," Balinor growled.

"Do not preach to me, Dragonlord," Uther sneered.

"I will not kill him," Balinor stated.

"Could you capture him?"

"You aren't really in the position to negotiate, your highness."

"If you capture him, I will hunt your kind no longer. And I promise you safe passage out of Camelot," King Uther promised.

Balinor regarded the king with a raised eyebrow. He didn't like it, but he could tell that the king was intent on ensuring the Dragon was under his own power.

"Alright," Balinor said, finally. "I'll do it under those terms then."

"Marvelous," King Uther brightened. "What must be done then?"

"Have your blacksmiths forge a chain," Balinor instructed. "Each link must be as thick as a large man's fist and the chain must be half a mile long."

"Such a chain will take a long time to forge!" Uther declared. "Camelot will fall before it is finished."

"Camelot will not fall by the works of the Great Dragon," Balinor said. "It is not Camelot's destiny to fall by the Dragon." With that he walked away.

"Dragonlord!" Uther roared after him. "How are we to do this? All of Camelot will perish!"

"You'll manage," Balinor called over his shoulder and kept walking. King Uther had no choice but to try to meet these demands.

It was only two days before word was sent to Balinor that the chain had been finished, despite the regular attacks from the Dragon. Apparently a vast amount of raw material has mysteriously been found outside of the city of Camelot, as if by magic. It could only be speculated that the Dragonlord had something to do with it.

Balinor entered Camelot like a whisper: unnoticed. It wasn't until he reached the steps in the castle courtyard that he was stopped by the guard.

"Halt!" They told him. They were young, and not really properly trained. That had been made guards recently, Balinor realized, their predecessors having been killed by Dragon attacks. They were both looking worn out and tired. They wouldn't last long either if Kilgharrah wasn't taken care of tonight.

"The king sent for me," Balinor said in his gruff voice. "I'm the Dragonlord that he summoned."

The guards flinched at the name of 'Dragon,' but they nodded and let him through. Another guard met him at the door and led him to the throne room. King Uther was there as well as several knights, waiting for Balinor.

"I received word that the chain has been forged," announced as he walked into the throne room, without any formality.

"Is that anyway to address the King?" one of the knights demanded. Balinor shrugged.

"Most of my subjects bow," Uther said.

"And do you bow to your subjects?" Balinor asked.

"How dare you suggest-" one of the knights started but the king waved him silent.

"No, that is not customary," the king replied.

"Well, then," Balinor stated, wandering around the room casually. "Since the dragon is subject to me, and your kingdom is currently subject to the dragon, it would stand to reason that I'm the one who ought to be bowed to."

This earned the young Dragonlord an odd look from the congregation. He enjoyed a small smirk.

"I however, tend to view all men as equals, commoners, sorcerers, kings, warlocks. We're all the same. Men struggling to do the right thing in a world that would like to turn light and darkness into a blinding gray mist of confusion," Balinor finished dramatically. His wandering turned into pacing in front of the throne.

"So if there is to be any bowing, I'd imagine that it would be done out of a mutual respect," Balinor said again. "Which will be difficult, I'm sure, your majesty, as we are all aware that we do not respect each other."

There was a stiff silence that followed. Balinor grinned, though not unkindly.

"So I take it the chain has been forged," he said, getting back to his original question.

"Yes, it has," King Uther replied stiffly.

"And where is it located?"

"I have had it fastened to the walls of the catacombs, deep beneath the halls of Camelot," Uther told him. "I hope this will be a safe place to keep the beast."

"Catacombs, eh? I suppose that would do," Balinor nodded thinking. "How do you propose that I get him down there?"

"There is a crevice that would be wide enough to lead it down there," Uther replied. "It's about five miles to the west of here."

"That would do it," Balinor nodded. He sighed. He did not like the idea of locking the noble beast there, but he knew of Uther's ruthlessness. If he just ordered the Dragon away he knew the King would have Balinor hunted. There would be no rest for him now that he'd gotten involved, unless he did what the King asked and captured the Dragon.

The King led Balinor down to the catacombs through a series of passages within the castle of Camelot itself and down to the underground cave system where the chain had been prepared.

The passage they had taken led them to a ledge that stood out over a small chasm. Across that stood a massive rock to which the chain was severely fastened. It was truly an impressive chain, and Balinor was surprised that they had finished it so quickly, but he imagined that they didn't have much of a choice. It was a matter of finishing quickly or watching the kingdom burn.

"Well done," Balinor told them, a hint of sarcastic in his voice. He found some stairs that led over to the chain and made his way across.

He closed his eyes and sighed deeply. He didn't want to do this, but besides imprisoning Kilgharrah, there was no harm that could be done to the great Dragon. He would be safe, relatively speaking.

Balinor spoke some ancient words and his eyes and chain glowed gold briefly.

"A sorcerer," one of the knight gasped, drawing his sword.

"Put it away, man," Uther replied. "This is necessary in order to catch the Dragon."

_Hypocrite_, Balinor though grimly. But he put the thought aside for now and focused deep inside himself, as his father had taught him, finding the place within his soul where he and the Dragon were brothers.

And Balinor roared.

It was a roar that was not possible for a human to make. The caves trembled with its force.

And the language of the Dragon-kind poured from Balinor's lips as his summoned Kilgharrah to himself.

The king and his knights had all drawn their swords, it was all they could do to feel safe in response to Balinor's roar. They trembled, not sure whether they were more afraid of the Dragon or Balinor now.

Then they heard the response of the Dragon: a roar, but it was one of despair and sorrow. Balinor continued to speak to the beast in their own strange language, now Balinor's tone was soothing, and sorrowful. The knights could see tears flowing freely from his eyes.

The Dragon seemed to fill up the underground caves with his presence. He seemed even larger underground than he had above. The knights were terrified but the dragon quietly lay down on the rock next to Balinor and closed his eyes in defeat. Balinor took a deep shaking breath and then looked over at the king and his knights solemnly.

Two knights, taking their cue crossed over to Balinor and the dragon, hesitantly, giving both lord and beast as much room as possible.

They took the free end of the chain and fastened it to Kilgharrah's hind leg. It fastened with a defint _chink_. The Dragon snarled, and the two men started in fear, but the great beast did nothing more, so the men scrabbled back to their place by the king.

"I am sorry, my brother," Balinor said to the Dragon.

"I am not easily forgiving, Dragonlord," Kilgharrah said. "I will have my revenge on Uther Pendragon. But it is my destiny to be here for a time. Fate has intended it to be so."

Balinor nodded and turned to leave and for a moment, the great Dragon thought about warning him, but then decided against it.

He was not so easily forgiving of Balinor either.


End file.
